Conventionaly, a substantially disk-like semiconductor wafer (hereinafter, simply referred to as “wafer”) of which front surface side is the circuit plane is known. Generally, the thickness of the wafer is controlled by grinding the rear surface side with a grinder or the like after sticking a protection tape on the circuit plane. Then, in a state that the rear surface side of the wafer is stuck to the adhesive face side of a dicing tape exposed within the inner side of the ring frame, the protection tape is peeled off from the front surface side of the wafer. And after that, the wafer is cut into a dice shape; thus, the semiconductor chip is formed.
As an apparatus for peeling off the protection tape from the wafer, such an apparatus as a type shown in FIG. 12 is known. The apparatus includes a suction unit 51 to hold the wafer W through sucking the dicing tape T on the upper face side as a suction face 50, and a peeling unit 53, which peels off the protection tape H of the wafer W held by the suction unit 51. The peeling unit 53 includes a roller 54 on which a strip-shaped peeling tape P, which is paid out between an unshown supply reel and a winding reel, is laid around. And it is arranged so that, after sticking the peeling tape P to the periphery edge of the protection tape H via the roller 54, by rotating the roller 54 along the radial direction of the protection tape H while winding the peeling tape P, the protection tape H is peeled off from the wafer W.
There resides the following problem in the above-mentioned apparatus. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, when the peeling tape P is stuck on the periphery edge of the protection tape H, the peeling tape P and the dicing tape T are stuck to each other by the elastically deformed roller 54. When peeling off the protection tape H is started in that state, the wafer W is damaged.
As an apparatus to solve the above problem, for example, such a type of apparatus as disclosed in patent document 1 is known. Referring to the document, a mask plate is provided in the vicinity of the suction unit, which can cover the adhesive face side (upper face side) of the dicing tape. When sticking the peeling tape to the periphery edge of the protection tape via the roller, the mask plate prevents the peeling tape from adhering to the dicing tape, and before and after peeling the protection tape, the mask plate can rotate from an area above the suction unit to an escaping position.
[Patent document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-319906